Virginia midfielder Chris LaPierre (Shawnee) has been recognized as one of 20 NCAA men’s lacrosse student-athletes tabbed as candidates for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award for excellence on and off the field.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – classroom, character, community and competition.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

LaPierre, a senior from Medford, N.J., is a two-time USILA All-American, earning third team honors in 2011 and second team honors in 2012 as a short-stick defensive midfielder. He also was named All-ACC in both of those seasons, while leading UVa in ground balls during each campaign.

LaPierre is one of three players from the ACC on the list of 20 candidates. Jesse Bernhardt (Maryland) and Marcus Holman (North Carolina) also represent the conference on the list.

The candidate class will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2013 NCAA Lacrosse Championships in Philadelphia May 25-27.